Nearly 600 fines, costing violators up to VND2 billion (US$88,900), were handed out in southern BinhDinh province to crack down on drunk drivers and motorists prior to the Tet (Lunar New Year).


The violations were reported nearly three weeks after checkpoints on Highway No.1 and No.19 were set up.

Among those using breathalyzer tests, 140 drivers of cars and trucks were fined for having blood alcohol concentrations exceeding permitted levels, said Major Ngo DucHoai, deputy head of the provincial traffic police department.

Hoai added that the police also discovered many vehicles travelling at high speeds and ordered their drivers to stop for alcohol tests. Many drivers were reluctant to follow police orders and some did not accept the punishment, claiming that they drank only a few bottles of alcohol.

Hoai warned that in the days before Tet, the number of people and vehicles on the road had increased. Drunk drivers were at higher risks of causing traffic accidents, he noted.

On Friday, a drunk driver named Nguyen Phi Dung, 31, was driving a container truck at high speeds on Highway No.19, where he killed one person. Dung was later detained by BinhDinh traffic police while trying to flee from the scene.

Under current regulations, drunk drivers with triple the allowed alcohol levels face a fine of VND12.5million ($556). Their driving licences are also taken away for two months.

Fines for drunk drivers with twice the alcohol blood levels may be fined VND7.5million ($333) and lose their drivers licence for one month.

Drunk motorists with lower alcohol levels are fined VND750,000 ($33.3) to VND2.5million ($111) and lose their drivers licences for seven days.